Canon Speedlite 580EX II

Canon Speedlite 580EX II

Thursday 26 June 2008, i decided to buy an external flash for my DSLR camera. I bought (so far) the best (and the most expensive) Canon external flash, Canon Speedlite 580EX II. Using an external flash is considered to be a big step up in photography level. With this external flash you can do more than you can before.

Speedlite parts.

Before we talk about photography essentials, let's talk about this thing first. Canon Speedlite 580EX II came with 1 external flash (of course, you're BUYING flash), 1 bag, 1 shoestand. Diffuser sold separately. Sometimes you'll need a diffuser in order to soften the light that came out from this flash. I bought this Speedlite with IDR 3850000 (USD 400).

Buying external flash means that you have to be prepared to buy another things that support external flash. I ended up buying diffuser (IDR 150000 around USD 18), 4 AA Powerex batteries with the charger (IDR 370000 around USD 40), and another 4 AA Powerex batteries without charger just for spare batteries (IDR 120000). I have to pay IDR 4440000 (USD 460) for all thos things including the flash itself. It takes a lot of money, but it's very worth to buy, especially for you DSLR user.

Comparison photo between internal flash and external flash usage.

Let's get back into photography essentials. Lighting is one of the important factor in photography. Great photos come from great lighting. I used to participate in a photography competition and the person who win this competition have very nice lighting (using wireless flash). Source of the light and where it come from must be calculated carefully in order to make a great photos.

First time you held an SLR you should realize something and come up with this question:

"I can see well in my well-lit room, but why my SLR responded with "very" slow shutter speed?"

Don't be decieved by your eyes.... Our eyes has bigger aperture, bigger than any lenses that has been made. With bigger aperture opening, more light comes in, so less shutter time needed.

Note 1 : Big aperture means big opening in the lens diaphragm (correct me if i'm wrong), but in camera system big aperture means smaller number in F value.

Note 2 : "very" Slow shutter speed means that your camera gives you a slow speed that normal human unable to hold it firmly, causing blur (shake) in the photo result.

Note 3 : Sorry for this technical talks. It must be difficult for non-photographer to follow, if you can't follow, just skip it and enjoy the photos :P.

Firing external flash directly to the object.

What will happen if the aperture already maxed and you still have a slow shutter speed? Pocket automatic camera will fire a flash to get the photos brighter and you can see the result. But the problem come from that internal flash. Usually, this kind of action will give you horrible result. The objects will get all flat and the 3D impression, my friend, will gone with the wind...

Firing diffused external flash directly to the object.

It might be the easiest way to prevent blur, but the result won't be good to see and enjoy. So you have to find another way to get good lighting. External flash is the best way to get good lighting. Look at the comparison photo above. You can see the the difference between internal flash (left) and external flash (right).

Firing undiffused external flash to the roof (bounce lighting).

External flash has more option so you can set it manually to get the best lighting you need. You can also vertically turn the flash 0-90° and horizontally turn it 360°. With this feature, you can shoot the light to walls or roof and bounce it back to the object. This way, you can give the photos a different lighting effect.

The best photo using speedlite so far.

I'm still experimenting to get the best lighting for me. So far, i haven't tried master slave system (2 speedlite, 1 mounted on camera, the other triggered using wireless). I planned on buying hotshoe slave to make a wireless flash trigger system. A wireless flash system is great for figure (mini-studio) photography.

Different flash position can create a different lighting effect. A minimum of 2 flashes are needed to create beautiful lighting effect. The first flash is used for hair lamp. The other flash can be used for lighting from side direction. Well, making good lighting could also be a killer for your wallet because of the things you need to purchase, so plan it wisely.

Well, that's it for now...

ISML - Sapphire breaking news

Don't cry Kyou... don't cry, you still have a chance.

When i thought i was late of posting news about Sapphire winner, a little something happened. According to the news, Sapphire 8 match was hacked and today they decided to do a rematch for Sapphire 8.

ISML will add an additional form in Emerald 3 match for this Sapphire 8 rematch. There can be different winner this time, and i know Haruhi have a big chance to surpass Kyou, i really hope she wins the necklace.

Link :
http://www.internationalmoeleague.com/
http://www.saimoearena.com/vote.html

ISML - Sapphire last match

Today, Saturday 21 June 2008, the last match of Sapphire period (Sapphire 9) will start at 0000 GMT. The match has been postponed because something happened in Sapphire 8. Anyway, don't forget to vote this time. These are the top 8 of Sapphire period, it seems that Shana still in the top position for Sapphire. But things can still change, i hope Fate can win this time.

Link :
http://www.internationalmoeleague.com/
http://www.saimoearena.com/vote.html

Anyway, i just cancelled one of my order this morning. I'm putting Mikuru maid cafe (Alter) out. I think i ordered to much for this June-July, so i guess i have to hold back a little. I'm also still in waiting for Reinforce Zwei, Fate Testarossa, and Elwing. It's been over 1 month for Reinforce Zwei, and i'm afraid the package lost somewhere.


EDIT (27 June 2008) : Whoops, because of Sapphire rematch the picture was deleted. So just wait for the newer version.

When figma meets figma ...

SD Strike Noir Gundam.

I said figma meets figma but what's an SD Gundam doing here? Yesterday i decided to spent some of my spare time doing random shot in new location, my living room. To make a perfect photos, usually i used my mini studio setup. But this time i tried to do something new. I used a living room glass table and i put it between the open door. I tried this to get some bright sunlight.

Another SD Strike Noir action.

The result is these photos. I used the living room (family room) as the background. I don't have to use tripod anymore, but the shutter speed is still low so i have to grab my camera tightly to prevent blur because of shake. This is why an IS (Image Stabilizer) Canon Lens and VR (Vibration Reduction) Nikon lens are expensive. It can prevent blurry image because of slow shutter speed.

Anyway, my brother asked me to do a photoshoot for his collection, SD Strike Noir. So i did this before i did figma photoshoot. SD Gundam has small flexibility and posability, so no more cool action photos for SD Strike Noir.

Strike Noir : Hey! That's my weapon, give it back to me!
Haruhi : Shut up or i'll kill you! I'm trying to kick some a** here!

Hey hey, this is it, my heroine appeared. Haruhi came holding 2 rifles which are SD Strike Noir weapons. Max Factory didn't made a pair of holding hands for nothing. You have to find your own parts so you can fill her holding hands with something interesting. These rifles fit in her hands, too bad she can't hold Strike Noir's swords.

Nanoha : Stop that!
Haruhi : Hei you're cuter than Mikuru, i wanna play with you!
Strike Noir : ...

When figma meets figma... they battled each others. Nanoha came to the rescue, she's the real heroine. No... i guess there's no heroine in this story, just playing random. Now i know that figma is more fun to play than nendoroid. Just like Gundam, joints, alternate parts, and posability are things that make figma fun to play with.

Nanoha : Aahh...!
Haruhi : Don't worry, i'll be gentle.
Strike Noir : What the hell!?

This is what i called FUN! You can make them do an ero scene :P. When Haruhi said "play with you" she means it. Oh no Haruhi, what are you doing with her!? Don't do that of Fate will kill you!. Haruhi attacked Nanoha fiercely, and then she played with her. There is no photos between these 2 photos above, so figure it out how Haruhi made Nanoha fell by yourself.

Nanoha : You... just want to play with me right?
Haruhi : Yea yea, i'll make you feel good.

Oh well, i guess Nanoha gonna enjoy this game. I like yuri, and i myself really enjoyed this photo session. So when figma meets figma, there will be yuri around XD. Come on Haruhi, i know you're good at yuri, make Nanoha feels good.

Haruhi : Nanoha-chan, you're really aggresive, i love it!
Nanoha : Ah yes... this is great!
Strike Noir : I'm seeing unwanted thing....

Nanoha thought that while Fate isn't around she can do whatever she wants, especially a love affair with Haruhi. So i guess Nanoha really enjoyed playing with Haruhi. Don't worry Nanoha, Fate isn't here yet, you'll free to have love affair with Haruhi until July or even August.

Nanoha : Ah.. al.. al.. almost there Haruhi...
Haruhi : Yes.. i... i... i love you Nanoha-chan...
Nanoha : I.. i.. i.. love you too...

Damn this is really hot, i can't even stand the heat. Nanoha really loves to do this thing with Haruhi. If Fate come, then this game will be over... or maybe this game will get even hotter then ever XD. Come on Fate, we'll be waiting for you.

Well, that's it for yesterday random shot. This is holiday so i guess i'll do some more random shot like this :P.

Liu Meifeng (GSC) - STF '08 Loot #2

Liu Meifeng.

This is the second loot from STF '08, Shuraki Trinity Box 02 Liu Meifeng. This figure is made by Good Smile Company, so the quality should be great. I'm really curious about this popular Shuraki series so i thought i gave it a try since i got it with a nice deal in STF '08. Normal price of this figure is JPY 6800, you still can get this thing in PA around USD 70, and i get this figure with exact JPY 6800.

Shuraki Trinity Box 02.

I'm surprised that with this JPY 6800, you got not only the figure but also a booklet and original drama CD, which is very good deal. Figure price nowadays is pretty high, so this figure is definitely a great deal with that bonus come with the figure.

Inside Meifeng box.

Most of you folks maybe already knew this figure and what's actually Shuraki is. But well, there's nothing wrong on rambling a little about this again. In STF '08, i found 4 Shuraki figures: Akatsuki, Meifeng, Nida, and Char. There are only one Meifeng and one Char, and the others still got many stocks. So Shuraki's actually a story series.

Each figure came with a drama CD, and inside that drama CD, there's Shuraki's storyline. That's explained why there's the word "volume" in each figure. I don't have Akatsuki (Shuraki vol 1) so i don't know about the story, but oh well... i can only understand Japanese language so little, so story or whatever it is doesn't really matter to me.

Figure parts, booklet, and drama CD here.

This figure has some parts with it. The unique part is her clothes. The clothes are made of some rubbery plastic, so it can stretch into some length. You have to put some force to change her clothes, so you have to be careful when playing or changing the clothes.

I noticed from the booklet and the box that each box characters have a different Voice actor (definitely), different illustrator, and different sculptor. The notable illustrator is Shunya Yamashita who's working as the illustrator for Nida. I like Meifeng illustrator since it has the cutest illustration style. Nida, Rize, and Monica were cutely drawn in the booklet.

Liu Meifeng, a Shuraki from China.

Meifeng is my favorite from the Shurakis. First, i like long hair, second, i like Chinese dress, and third she has a loli face but she got sexy body, what a perfect combination! She also got a custom base which made a more realistic feeling. I bought Shuraki Meifeng not for the series but for the figure, so I'll focus on the figure itself.

Liu Meifeng with battle damaged clothes, sexy.

This is the best feature of Shuraki figure. Not only it's castoffable into the underwear, it also has a clothes change and it's damaged version. Giving the pleasure to enjoy fashion (ripped off fashion) and sexiness simultaneously. Bra and panties service without removing her clothes off.

Liu Meifeng with underwear only, HAWT!

I know that I'm not into a castoffable figure, but you know this is HAWT! It's even better than a normal bikini figure. This is not a bikini, this is underwear! Yeah, that's why it's hot. As i said earlier, Meifeng has a beautiful loli face but she also got a hawt sexy body, with big breast and sexy butt (i said that a lot lately).

Eventhough i said that i don't know Japanese language that much, but i can manage to understand some parts of the story. The story below is just my assumption so is I'm wrong please tell me the truth :P.
Shuraki is a person who receive a mysterious power but cursed at the same time. There are 7 Shuraki across the world which involved in a killing game called En-Bu, they are:
- Akatsuki Mishiro - Shuraki from Japan, a normal yet unfortunate Japanese high school girl. She has to bear the responsibility of becoming Shuraki without knowing anything. She used a katana for battle.
- Mizuchi Towako - another Shuraki from Japan, she's a daughter of priest who knows the truth behind Shuraki En-bu game, but unfortunately she's too naive which is a greate disadvantage in the battle. She used twin steel fans for battle.
- Liu Meifeng - Shuraki from China, left home and came to Japan. Living with Towako and her dad in Mizuchi shrine. She's cheerful but smart. She used twin Chacram for battle.
- Char Rouseman - Shuraki from France. She was born in noble family (not much info on her). She used rapier for battle.
- Nide Scheltlitch - Shuraki from Germany. She's cool (again, not much info). She used sniper for battle.
- Rizfis Luttiva Mente - Shuraki from Italy. She's cheerful but scary, giving her the Yandere aura. She used a halberd for battle.
- Monicadred Olivier - Shuraki from UK. I know she's loli, cold like Yuki, but she's cute with that goth loli appearance. She used great sword for battle.

I think that En-Bu game is a game like Holy Grail war in Fate Stay Night. They have to kill each other in order to win something, that is getting their curse lifted off.

Here's the main story in volume 2:
- Meifeng who's coming from China lived in Mizuchi shrine with Towako. She's training with her to prepare for the fight with the enemy, White Raven (i dunno who's white raven is but i think it's Rize and Nida). Towako's father who knows almost everything about this curse gave Meifeng and Towako some information about Shuraki and En-Bu. They believed that they can overcome the curse without killing each other.
- They met Akatsuki who's somewhat paranoid in the middle of the training. Akatsuki attacked all of the sudden but with some conversation and Towako's tears, she stopped and followed Meifeng and Towako to the shrine. They lived together afterward.
- Meanwhile Rize, Monica, and Nida were in the way to the shrine, and they met someone in the way. That person is somewhat connected with Akatsuki.
- After Rize and Nida arrived, Monica disappeared. Meifeng who's still training with Towako realized their existence around. After some time (i dunno what were they doing), Meifeng's group met with Rize's group.
- On the other hand, Akatsuki who's still inside the shrine also realized the existence, and she rushed out after that. In the end she met with Monica and clashed sword with her. I know that Rize said something about Monica being invincible. So i guess it's Akatsuki's disadvantage.

Once again this is just an assumption. My Japanese language is still below beginner level. So please if i'm wrong, correct me right away. Laugh if you want, but please correct me right away.

My computer desk, complete with the "girls".

So this is my desk right now. It's full around the table, so i have to get something to put the figures. My new figures always go to place that i can easily reach and see. If you notice, i put Mitsuru in the back because she's somewhat old figure for me. The right hand side (near the mouse) is the place for newest figure. I'm not gonna fill the middle space because that would block my LCD view. And i'm not gonna fill the space in front of Teana Lanster because it's place for my cellphones there.

Well, that's it for the STF '08 loots. Just wait for the figure photoshoots. I'm in holiday right now, so i have so much free time to use.

Kureha (Kotobukiya) - STF '08 Loot #1

Alright!!! Exam period is over today. This day is the last day of exam and this officially ends the academic activities for this semester. I had a lot of hard time dealing with the subjects in this semester. But oh well, everything has already gone away like a wind. Anyway enough chitchat about this semester, here's today topic:

Kotobukiya Kureha.

Kotobukiya Kureha, loot number 1 from Surabaya Toy Festival 2008. As i've told you before, i got this figure with a nice deal. A JPY 300 lower than the normal price. I guess events like that help me getting figures in a good deal.

As usual, photographs on the backside of the box.

At first i didn't plan on getting this figure because i already have Max Factory's Kureha. But after seeing this beauty in the festival, i kinda interested and ended up buying this figure because of the great deal given by the seller.

No alternate parts.

After seeing figma with so many parts, i kinda forgot on how a fixed pose PVC figure doesn't have that many parts as figma. This Kureha is actually my first fixed pose figure after 2 consecutive figmas haul.

Kureha's parts, not really that many.

I never consider castoffability of a figure because i enjoy the fashion, not ecchiness. So i don't really care if you can take off her skirt and see her white panties. I like Kureha's clothes, it's like a combination between uniqueness, traditional, and sexiness (big breasts and visible cleavage). Anyway, she came with her bow, this time the bow has a golden colored string.

Watch out when she shoots you.

Her face looks kinda cute in this figure. In Max Factory Kureha, her face looks melancholic, giving beauty and elegant feeling. The best thing in this figure is the pose, yeah the pose. It's like a battle pose, elegant battle pose.

Still sexy even from the back.

I don't really know how to put her bow in her hand properly, so i just put her bow just like in the official photos. Even from the back you can see her sexiness, her big breast and her sexy butt, very nice. With her clothes flying like that it's actually pretty hard to put her on my desk since she consumes a more space on her front and her back.

Comparison with Max Factory Kureha.

The reason i missed Kotobukiya Kureha was Max Factory Kureha. I thought that if i had 1 Kureha, i don't think i should add more since i already had one and this Kotobukiya Kureha isn't that special. But oh well, in the end i bought it. Here's side by side comparison of the 2 Kureha(s).

More dynamic pose, that's the thing i can say for Kotobukiya Kureha. Max Factory Kureha doesn't have any dynamic pose. I'm not going to compare the quality of the sculpt and the painting since Max Factory always wins in these parts, just look at Kureha's collar. You can compare the quality of the painting there. Max factory Kureha gives a more realistic face. With that sad and melancholic expression, Max Factory Kureha wins. But Kotobukiya Kureha still has her own cute face.


Well, that's it for today. This day is still Friday so i guess there's still tiem to vote for ISML, so go for it! And don't forget to look forward to 2nd loot of STF '08, Liu Meifeng.
http://www.internationalmoeleague.com/
http://www.saimoearena.com/vote.html

Participate in ISML!

Sapphire match 4 result.

Japan Saimoe reached 3000++ votes in the final match. Why can't a International Saimoe match reach even a thousand votes?

Sapphire necklace standing.

I've been participating in this ISML events for around 1 month. And i think that ISML needs more voters. It's international level but the participants doesn'e even reach a half number of Japan Saimoe voters.

Konata vs. Rena, hard to choose.

Today (now) the Sapphire 5 match is still in going. Why don't you vote now? I had a hard time voting for Rena or Konata. Both of them are my favorite characters.

Overall standings.

So far, this event has reached half way from the tournament part. But it's not too late for participating. Better late than never.

Link:
http://www.internationalmoeleague.com/
http://www.saimoearena.com/vote.html

Surabaya Toy Festival 2008 - day 2

Sorry for the late update :P. I planned on posting this on Sunday, but with Mathematics exam and Computer graphics project, i had to delay the post. So here's the coverage for 2nd day of STF '08. The main event for the 2nd day is cosplay, nothing much new for the figures sold.

I couldn't get the photos of their action.

First, they called some martial artists to demonstrate some of their move. They also called some swordmaster to demonstrate some move using katana. I don't really know what's the point of calling some martial artists in this toys and hobby themed event.

C.C. and Haruhi.

The main event was Cosplay Cabaret Contest. In this contest a group of cosplayer have to perform a small drama. I didn't watch Code Geass, so i don't know about the characters, but the girl on the left called herself C.C. . I don't know if it's true or not, but it doesn't seem like C.C. i used to see in some illustration.

Hare hare yukai dance, very Haruhi indeed.

This group performed Hare hare dance in the last part of their drama. I guess this is the first time someone performed a Hare-hare dance in Surabaya open in public. There are no beautiful girls cosplaying here, so i guess the people here kinda ruining the image of the real anime characters. But i guess, they have the guts to show off in public.

Zero cosplayer.

Last year, 80% of the cosplayer were cosplaying Naruto s***. Almost all of them are Narutard. The rest were cosplaying tokusatsu things. In this year event, almost 50% of the cosplayer were cosplaying tokusatsu. The other cosplayer were cosplaying anime characters. Some of the cosplayer were wearing their own original costume.

C.C. is the best 9.

After the Cosplay Cabaret Competition, there's a small event called "Best Cosplay". Not all of the cosplayer participated in the Cosplay Cabaret Competition. In this best cosplay event, they were all called to the stage and perform some nice moves. In the end, the judge chose the best 9 from all of the cosplayer.

V-Gundam.

Some contestant of Gundam diorama contest already submitted their work. This is yesterday V-Gundam, with new custom made action base. I don't know how they made base like that.

Freedom Gundam.

Now this what i call creativity. The contestant used wax to create a unique effect. It's Freedom-Gundam. The winner of this contest was annouced at the last day of this event. Too bad i didn't come at that day, so i don't know who's the winner.

Mirei-san in a diorama. I wonder where'd they get that chair.

Events like these are rare. Only 1 event per year. Some of the participant came from other cities, or even other province just to open a stand and sells their collection here. That's why almost no new figure today.

Another treasure.

Here's some treasure i didn't notice yesterday. There are some good things around here like: Luca (AR2 MaxFact), Shuraki Needa, Shuraki Meifeng, Yuma maid, Komaki Ikuno, Nagato Yuki swimsuit ver. , etc.


In the end, i bought this. Liu Meifeng, Shuraki Trinity box 2. I never knew Shuraki before, and i don't know how they can be so popular. So i bought this with normal price, JPY 6800. It's a good deal i guess, looking at Liu Meifeng's price at PA.


This event was held in 6-8 June 2008, and it's in the middle of my exam period. I didn't come in the 3rd day because i have exam in Monday. So, this concludes my coverage about this event.

Surabaya Toy Festival 2008 - day 1

It's rare thing for a hobby themed festival to be happening around Indonesia. I heard that there are only 2 annual events held in Indonesia: Jakarta Toy Festival and Surabaya Toy Festival. Both festival held in 2 largest city in Indonesia.

What're they doing there?

Figure events in each country reflect the collectors in the country. In Indonesia, people don't really welcome otaku and Japanese anime lover like me. Well, this doesn't happen only in Indonesia right? I won't call these collectors otaku, since they have their own area of collection.

Oh! It's Surabaya Toy Festival 2008!

This STF '08 (Surabaya Toy Festival 2008) consists of many kind of toys, starting from Japanese PVC figures, Gundam, American toys, automotive model kits, and many more. There are things like Lego building kit or unique board game called Strategos.

Stand that sells cars kit.

This IS Indonesian toys event. Most of this event is dominated by American toys. Indonesian people tends to collect things like Superman, Batman, Ironman, Marvel heroes, etc. Around 40% of products sold in this event are American toys. Collecting car models is also one kind of collection. Around 2 stands sells car models (approximately 5%).

Gundam model kits SALE!

Next up is Gundam model kits. There are many Indonesian people who watch anime, but few of them really called otaku. Almost 80% of Indonesian people who watch anime, watch shonen anime just like Naruto, Bleach, One Piece, and Gundam. No wonder there are many Gundam model kits sold around this event, approximately around 25%.

Gundam Yen price X 95 = free shipment.

In the photo above, if you noticed, below my signature there's a sign mentioning "Yen X 95". Do you know what's that mean? You know that on Gundam boxes, you can see the Yen price beside its serial number. Multiply that Yen price with IDR 95 and that's your sale price. Note that a JPY price multiplied by IDR 95 equals a buying Gundam model kit without paying the shipment rate.

Nice figures sold.

And next up, things that i love the most is Japanese PVC figures. I have to mention that completely in order not to be confused with American figures. Almost at the same rate as Gundam, it's around 20% of this event products sold.

Shonen anime products, always try to evade it.

They sold things vary from Shonen old anime like Dragon Ball, Final Fantasy figures, and even Haruhi figures. As i mentioned above, most of Indonesian anime watcher only like Shonen s***s like Naruto, Bleach, and One Piece (too many narutard). You'll find a lot of those anime products in this event.

Shonen anime trading figures.

Using trading figures as display is a great thing, since opening PVC figures from the box is bad mistake. Look carefully and you'll know that the trading figures they display are Naruto, Bleach, One Piece, Dragon Ball, Final Fantasy, and Shonen series like that. Once again, Shonen anime has great influence in Indonesia.

Secret treasures.

That's the bad thing for me, but inside this event there's always a treasure can be found inside. I found some interesting things like Metamo Yuki, Queen Blade Airi, Nendoroid Tsuruya, figma Haruhi, Nendoroid Haruhi, Nendoroid Mabinogi Nao, Saber maid, etc. In photo above, you'll see a very great treasure like Shuraki vol. 1, Rider maid, and Kotobukiya's Kureha. I went to this event just to find secret treasures.

Some figure diorama display.

Sometimes diorama is important in displaying figures. You know, i like to try making diorama for my figures, especially for my photoshot. But it's hard to made, i guess. Anyone can give me tips and trick to make a diorama for figures?

Shuraki Char Rousemann (correct me if i'm wrong).

This is the best treasure i found in this event, Shuraki Char Rousemann figure. Too bad, because of its rarity, the store sold this figure overprice. From the real price JPY 6800 to a whacking JPY 9000. That's a total rip off, but in the end someone bought it. Now that's a real otaku (or collectors?).

Nendoroid Al Azif.

Another secret treasure i found is Nendoroid Al Azif (Demonbane). Cute as always, a Nendoroid like this can steal people hearts, even for non-otaku people. The real price is JPY 3500 and they sold it around JPY 3750, but with a little bargaining you can get this exactly at JPY 3500.

Gundam Exia and GN ARMS Type. (correct me if i'm wrong)

I'm not collecting Gundam model kits, but i guess i'll show you this. A HG kit for Gundam EXIA in whatever mode and whatever mounted weapon (just like METEOR unit i guess). Looks cool, but my brother said no for this.

Hyper mode G Gundam and Master Gundam.

Are these what you call secret treasure? Two classic Gundam model kits. Hyper Mode God Gundam and Hyper Mode Master Gundam. Both of them are covered in gold. But once again, my brother said no to these things. He has his own choice i guess.


Let's go for in-depth coverage:

Ironman figure.

I watched Ironman movie last month, and i know Ironman is cool. The figure is also cool, with cool whacking USD 650 price. I guess this things for a real collectors. I can use that money for other things XD.

A little closer look at Ironman.

I wonder if this Ironman will sold out in this event. Looking at the price, no one will buy him except a real crazy collector. Cool enough to show off, i guess.

Silver Surfer.

The silver surfer from movie Fantastic Four : The Rise of Silver Surfer. I didn't watch that movie since i don't really like Fantastic Four. Movies like that are only place to show off great CG graphics. But silver surfer does look really cool.

Fraulein Revoltech Tohsaka Rin.

Oh a Fraulein Revoltech Tohsaka Rin. After seeing this, now i know how they work. Many people comparing this series with figma. Of course, figma win the match, from the quality of the movement, number of alternate parts, overall quality, and not to forget the characters. Almost all popular characters are made to figma figures.

Saber cleaning up the toilet.

Saber maid (but not from GSC) in a diorama. She's having though time clening up toilets. This diorama does look cool. The lighting itself gives Saber a totally different look compared to normal look. With that look and maid outfit, it made a weird but great combination.

Gundams in diorama.

This event also held a Gundam diorama competition. Some contestants already put their diorama in the event, so i can see some of it. Sorry for the blurry photos, i kind of in hurry this time. So far as i lived, i haven't seen a diorama that has a story in it.

nu Gundam (?).

This is another painted (?) Gundam model kit. As far as i remember, this Gundam is nu Gundam. Please correct me if i'm wrong. I'm not into Gundam series, but i love seeing cool Gundams. It's a kit for contest, looks like painted kit to me.

Bugati car model.

Next up is car models. Before i started my otaku life, i like seeing cool cars. Watching movies like Fast n Furious series made me want to try those cool cars, eventhough it's just a dream. But fortunately, i can forget that dream and change my direction into Japanese figure collecting.

Audi R8, an exotic cars.

Exotic cars like this only exist in special place. I heard that if someone wants to buy a Ferrari Enzo, that person has to fulfill some requirements like: bought at least one Ferrari car, got an invitation and offers from Ferrari, and some others requirements. So if you can't get the real cars, then get the models! I do play some car racing games, so i know what's great and what's not.

Ball-Jointed doll.

I don't know what's this. You can call this doll, or figure, or whatever you want. Big scale (1/3), cute, and it's called ball-jointed doll. I guess it's just like a figma, you can move the body parts, with joints shaped like ball.

Lego kits.

Ever see these things? Lego building kits. Normally it's for kids under 14. But the completely built things are beautiful and nice to see. The car on the front is Speed Racer cars, old anime that has been remade into a nice movie.

Great Saiyaman cosplayer and the MCs.

For today, no special cosplay events, just MCs talking each others and promoting this events and the rundown. They were wearing some Japanese clothing, accompanied by Great Saiyaman (hey, i still remember the name, it's actually Son Gohan).


Well, that's it for today coverage. This event goes in 3 days starting from June 6th, 2008. So there will be more coverage tomorrow. I hope i can forget my Computer Graphics and cover more of this events :P. Oh yeah, not to forget, the loots from this event :

The loots (Kureha's mine, the others' not mine).

I bought Kotobukiya's Kureha with JPY 5500 bargain price. Normal price is JPY 5800, they sold at JPY 5750, and i did a little bargain and i got it with JPY 5500. Nendoroid Al Azif isn't mine, it's my girl's loot. She got it with normal price: JPY 3500. At first the store sold at JPY 3750, but with a little bargaining, we got it at JPY 3500. And the last is my brother's loot: Strike Noir with bargain price. Normal price for Strike Noir is JPY 4500, but with event discount and connection discount, he got it with JPY 4050.